Text to Speech: What It Is, How It Works and the Best Tools

Curious to know how Text to Speech can help you? Imagine spending hours writing subtitles for your videos and then recording that content without having the right voice for it. It's frustrating and takes up precious time, isn't it?

Text to Speech is becoming an increasingly strong trend in the digital world. That's why, in this article, we're going to explore what this technology is, how it works and present the best tools available on the market. Read on!

What is Text to Speech? 

Text to Speech (TTS) transforms written texts into natural, fluid speech. It's like a bridge between the written and spoken world, allowing information to be absorbed in a more convenient and engaging way in your daily life.

By incorporating TTS into your routine, you can, for example, turn video scripts for social media into professional narrations, ready for publication. 

This tool allows you to create more authentic and memorable experiences for your followers and customers, significantly raising the level of your digital communication.

How does Text to Speech work?

Text to Speech technology uses artificial intelligence (AI), in conjunction with machine learning, to analyze the input text, identifying linguistic structures and classification patterns.

He then selects the appropriate phonemes - the smallest sound units in the language - and combines them fluidly. This process takes into account nuances such as intonation, rhythm and pauses, which are essential for authentic speech.

Finally, TTS uses a database of pre-recorded sounds or synthesized voice models to produce the final audio, creating an auditory experience almost identical to that of a real speaker.

What are the main features of Text to Speech?

Here are the main features that TTS is able to offer, catering for different needs and preferences.

  • Languages of Different Nations: TTS supports a wide range of languages, from the most widely spoken globally to less common regional languages. This linguistic diversity facilitates international communication and the global accessibility of information;
  • Different types of voices: users can choose between male and female voices, each with their own unique characteristics. In addition, many systems offer options for regional accents and intonation variations, allowing the generated audio to adapt perfectly to the desired cultural or geographical context.

Among other features.

Discover the 10 Best Text-to-Speech Tools

See below for an updated list of the best Text-to-Speech tools of recent years.

1. ElevenLabs

Text to Speech: ElevenLabs homepage

ElevenLabs is an AI text-to-speech tool that offers thousands of high-quality human voices in 32 languages.

It responds to emotional cues in the text and adjusts the delivery to suit the content and context. You can choose from thousands of voices in the Voice Library or create new voices from scratch.

The ElevenReader app narrates articles, PDFs, ePubs and newsletters, allowing you to listen to your content anywhere with studio-quality audio narrations.

Try ElevenLabs for 7 days at Tess AI with a satisfaction guarantee or get your money back!

2. MURF.AI

Text to Speech: MURF AI homepage

MURF AI is a powerful text-to-speech tool that transforms words into realistic, natural audio. Available in over 20 languages, Murf uses ethically sourced data and authentic models to create high-quality voices.

Murf Speech Gen 2, its latest generation technology, produces voices that are almost indistinguishable from human speech, capturing every nuance and subtlety. The tool allows you to adjust intonation, rhythm and tone, as well as emphasize different words and generate various versions of narration.

3. Speechify

Text to Speech: Speechify home page

With Speechify, you have access to over 200 natural AI voices in more than 60 languages. Perfect for use with Google Docs, news, emails, books, PDFs and much more. Read up to 4.5 times faster and save up to 9 hours a week.

Speechify also offers instant summaries to make texts easier to understand. In addition, you can use the application to take a photo of any page and hear the text read aloud.

4. Synthesia

Text to Speech: Synthesia home page

Synthesia is a tool that offers more than 2,000 AI voices, updated frequently to improve quality and add new options. It uses text-to-speech technology to read texts aloud.

It also allows you to combine your voice with the face of an AI avatar, providing a complete experience of hearing and seeing the text come to life.

5. Amazon Polly

Text to Speech: Amazon Polly homepage

Amazon Polly uses deep learning technologies to synthesize human speech with natural sounds, allowing you to convert articles into speech. With dozens of realistic voices in several languages, you can create speech-activated applications. 

Adjust the style, speed, tone and intensity of speech. Amazon Polly supports SSML, a markup language for adjusting phrases, emphasis and intonation.

6. Description

Text to Speech: Descript homepage

Descript is a tool that transforms any text or script into natural speech. It offers dozens of realistic AI voices or lets you create customized voice clones in minutes. Ideal for podcast introductions, narrations, faceless videos and more. 

With Descript, you can generate and edit voice audio simply by typing, adjusting and exporting it in the desired format. The tool has more than 20 realistic AI voices, ranging from corporate to conversational, male to female. 

Create and share your own AI voices for future projects or to adjust existing recordings without re-recording.

7. Lovo

Text to Speech: Lovo homepage

LOVO AI is a hyper-realistic AI voice generator. With over 500 voices in 100 languages. Its cutting-edge technology produces voices that are almost indistinguishable from human voices, saving you time and money when creating high-quality voice-overs. 

The user interface is easy to use, even for audio production beginners, and is perfect for companies, content creators, educators and anyone who wants to create engaging content.

8. Play.ht

Text to Speech: Play HT homepage

Play.ht offers a vast library of over 800 natural AI voices, including human intonation. It provides a multilingual experience in 142 languages and accents, enhanced by Machine Learning.

With Play.ht, you can generate AI voices that are indistinguishable from human voices, using realistic models to create expressive speech. 

The tool also allows voice cloning, capturing all accents and dialects. Its voice generation and cloning APIs work in real time, and the online text-to-speech studio is rich in features.

9. NaturalReader

Text to Speech: NaturalReader home page

NaturalReader supports more than 5 languages and has more than 200 AI voices. Its text-to-speech applications read texts aloud naturally and with content recognition, resulting in realistic narrations. 

NaturalReader is ideal for commercial use such as YouTube, training, audiobooks and more. It also supports PDF and 20 other formats.

10. Fliki

Text to Speech: Fliki homepage

Fliki is a text-to-speech tool that uses ultra-realistic AI voices. With over 2,000 voices in more than 80 languages and 100 accents. 

With it, you save time and avoid the cost of hiring announcers, and you can customize your voice with AI, adjusting emotions, tone, speed and pauses. 

Visualize and export your audio easily. Perfect for integrating text and audio and creating compelling content that impresses your audience.

Text-to-Speech use cases

Text-to-Speech has revolutionized several areas, offering innovative solutions and expanding into multiple sectors and communication channels. Let's take a look at some of the main use cases for this technology:

  • Conversational AI: natural voices elevate the interaction experience with chatbots and virtual assistants, making them more engaging and human;
  • Podcasts: TTS allows the quick and efficient creation of audio content, facilitating the regular production of episodes and expanding creative possibilities, as well as reducing the time spent on manual recordings;
  • Games: characters and narrations come to life with synthesized voices, enriching the immersive experience for players and production costs;
  • Audiobooks: transform texts into realistic narrations, creating audiobooks in multiple languages quickly and efficiently. This technology democratizes the production of audio content and offers readers an immersive and convenient experience;
  • Video Narration: content creators can generate professional narrations for their videos, improving the quality and consistency of their productions;
  • Accessibility: text-to-speech integration on websites and applications provides audio versions of content, helping users with visual impairments or reading difficulties, promoting digital inclusion.

Advantages of Using Text to Speech in Business

Here are some of the advantages of integrating text to speech into your communications!

  1. Improve Customer Interactions with Intelligent and Realistic Responses: Text to Speech allows you to create automatic responses that sound natural and empathetic, raising the quality of customer service;
  2. Engage Users with Voice User Interface: by implementing voice interfaces, you offer a more intuitive and accessible experience. This not only improves usability, but also extends the reach of your product, making it more inclusive for people with different needs and preferences;
  3. Personalize Your Communication Based on User Preference: TTS allows you to adapt your message to the profile of your target audience. You can select voices that resonate with different demographics, cultures and regions, creating a stronger, more authentic connection with your customers on a global scale;
  4. Find the Perfect Voice for Your Content: with a variety of voices available, you can choose the ideal tone that best represents your brand. This helps build a consistent sound identity, strengthening brand recognition and customer loyalty.

Conclusion

Text to Speech is an innovation that not only breaks down accessibility barriers, but also gives a voice to projects that previously remained on paper, increases the scalability of the reach and overcomes language barriers.

Don't put it off. Using AI in business is no longer an option - it's a necessity! Increase your competitive advantages, boost your business now!

Tess AI
Tess AI
Hello, I'm Pareto AI. I bring together all the best AIs in the world in one place.

Related articles